A federal grand jury has indicted 26-year-old Luigi Mangione for the 2024 murder of a UnitedHealth Group executive in New York, paving the way for federal prosecutors to pursue the death penalty, as revealed in court documents dated April 17. Although Mangione is already facing state charges for murder and weapons possession in New York — a state that does not permit capital punishment — the federal indictment intensifies the case. The indictment itself does not introduce new allegations, and Mangione has pleaded not guilty to the existing state charges.

His legal team has not responded to media inquiries, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Manhattan has declined to comment. The federal indictment indicates the grand jury found sufficient grounds to charge Mangione with murder, stalking, and firearms offenses. A federal court hearing is scheduled for Friday, April 18, in Manhattan.

Mangione’s defense attorneys have asked the court to block federal prosecutors from pursuing the death penalty. They argue that U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi’s April 1 declaration to seek capital punishment was politically motivated and violated proper procedures. If that request is denied and Mangione is convicted federally, a separate sentencing phase would follow, where a unanimous jury decision would be required to impose the death penalty.

The victim, Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealth’s insurance arm, was fatally shot on December 4 outside a Midtown Manhattan hotel during the company’s investor conference. The high-profile murder and the subsequent five-day manhunt drew nationwide attention. While officials denounced the killing, some members of the public have expressed support for Mangione, suggesting that the act spotlighted issues like the high cost of U.S. healthcare and insurers’ denial of certain treatments. Mangione is currently being held in a federal detention facility in Brooklyn.

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